William Kelso's new book about Jamestown has a lot on the condition
of Williamsburg before it became "colonial" again, and a picture of a
run-down street, many of the colonial buildings were decrepit stores,
an old gas station, etc. So we may, in hindsight, criticize what
Rockefeller did, but if he hadn't done it, there might be nothing
left of Williamsburg now but a bulldozed away, built-over "golfing
community" [or yet another one...].
I have a lovely watercolor my mother, who was a very good semi-
professional artist, did of the old Gaol before it was rehabbed. I
have at times wondered if some historical place might like it.
Randy, my great grandmother Ida Jacobs Cardwell, who supported
herself and her young daughter after her husband died at age 33, was
a seamstress in addition to running a boarding house. Supposedly she
made clothes for some of the leading ladies in Richmond, including
Mrs. James Branch Cabell.
Nancy
-------
I was never lost, but I was bewildered once for three days.
--Daniel Boone
On Feb 27, 2007, at 6:56 AM, Randy Cabell wrote:
> Those pesky Carolinianans again. First it was the Movavians
> claiming they brought brass music to Amercia, and now the
> Charlestonians eclipse Williamsburg on the preservation front.
>
> But really that is pretty much like comparing apples and oranges.
> Charleston had a BIG reason to be there. It was THE southern port,
> center of commerce and industry, even had a railroad going
> upcountry while we Virginians (alas, led by Joseph Carrington
> Cabell) were still digging a canal to nowhere. And of course as
> every good South Carolinian knows, Charleston is located on the
> point where the Ashley and Cooper Rivers flow together to form the
> Atlantic Ocean.
>
> All in all, Chas had a lot more buildings to start with, so even if
> they preserved the same %, it would be a potload more than
> Williamsburg ever had to start with.
>
> Randy Cabell - The Trumpeter of Jamestowne
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Langdon" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Monday, February 26, 2007 11:36 PM
> Subject: Re: [VA-HIST] Williamsburg preservaton
>
>
>> The Williamsburg Foundation states that 88 historic buildings
>> remain. Of these, only a few are pre-revolutionary and not re-
>> constructed. I'd like to know the exact number. I think it is 20,
>> but possibly only 19. Then again - maybe it depends on how much
>> gutting counts, before it is counted as *reconstructed*, rather
>> than *preserved*.
>>
>> Charleston, SC, has 73 pre-revolutionary buildings, and 136 from
>> the late 18th century, and 600 more that are pre- 1840. I
>> believe the difference between the two cities is that Charleston
>> got a head start of about 10 years on Williamsburg. That makes me
>> think that every year of neglect counts. It also means that we
>> should really pay more attention to our heritage and watch out for
>> plans to modernize. We will loose enough from natural disasters.
>>
>> Langdon
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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